Naval battle between Greeks and Trojans is an original etching realized by Giovanni Battista Sculptors (1503-1575) in 1538. Black and white burin. Second state of five. Glued on a secondary support. Inscriptions on plate on the lower center: "I. B. MANTVANVS / SCULPTOR 1538 ". It is not possible to trace the presence of the watermark, as the copy is pasted on a secondary paper support; the sheet has a central fold, usual for works of this size, closed on the reverse with reinforcing paper; Also there are some small tears along the perimeter and an unidentifiable ink inscription in the lower left corner Reference: - Adam Bartsch, Le Peintre graveur, Vienna, 1820, vol. XV, n. 20 - Stefania Massari (eds), Engravers mantovani of '500. Giovan Battista, Adam, Diana Sculptors and Giorgio Ghisi from the collections of the National Ministry of the Press and the National Engraving Center, De Luca, Rome, 1980, n. 6 - Tiziano Ortolani (eds), New trails carved between Mantua and Rome, engravings by Mantegna in Reverdino, Milan, Galleria Marca Water, 1999, p. 22, n. 6 - TIB - THE ILLUSTRATED BARTSCH, New York, Abaris, 1978-1983, 20, V. 31, p. 26 Refined, processed and well-known engraving, in cui Giovan Battista Sculptors Demonstrates His drawing skills, technical skill in the use of the burin and an extraordinary creative vein. It is possible to Recognize, in the excitement of the event, the chariot of Poseidon (Neptune in Roman mythology), a reference perhaps to the fourteenth book of the Iliad in cui it is Said That, taking advantage of the sleep of Zeus, induced by Hera, Poseidon went to rescue the Greeks by Allowing them to defeat the Trojans. Prince Hector, seriously wounded with a stone by Ajax Telamon, was is brought back to Troy before His final defeat. The manly and nude powerful who, brandishing a long sword, guides the Greeks, described in the background of the composition, could personify Poseidon himself, while the man on the ground, Placed at his feet and defended by a fellow warrior, would instead be the Trojan prince. For Bartsch, who Indicates the burin as the best Among Those made by the Mantuan masters, the work would derive from a drawing by Giulio Romano while the studies dedicated to the sculptors have assigned him the originality of the composition. The rendering of the bodies, the strong plasticity and the lively movement However recall the language of Giulio Romano, to-whom the Sculptors Looked with attention, as well as references to the Raphael of the Sistine Tapestries for the definition of some details, such as, , described the man on the right, with His arms raised in the act of lifting a wounded man, deriving from the cartoon for the "Miraculous Fishing". The work Consists of about forty-three figures, a river, four sea horses and Poseidon's chariot. In his Treatise on painting, published in Milan in 1584, Paolo Lomazzo Indicates the work as an example for Those Who wanted to deal with this subject, enhancing the skills of the sculptors. The specimen Seems To belong to the second state, bearing the signatures but not the excudits of Van Aelst, then of Giovanni Giacomo de 'Rossi and finally That of the Chamber Chalcography; the addresses of the printers follow one another in the third, fourth and fifth states, in the lower right corner. The Chamber Chalcography in creating the last was in 1823, censored the plate, now kept at the National Chalkotheke in Rome.
Get in Touch
Make An Offer
We noticed you are new to Pamono!
Please accept the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy
Get in Touch
Make An Offer
Almost There!
To follow your conversation on the platform, please complete the registration. To proceed with your offer on the platform, please complete the registration.Successful
Thanks for your inquiry, someone from our team will be in touch shortly
If you are a Design Professional, please apply here to get the benefits of the Pamono Trade Program